IHRP, 70+ Organizations Ask UN Committee to Review the Impact of Canadian Arms Exports on the Rights of Palestinians with Disabilities

TORONTO, ON – A coalition of more than 70 disability rights, human rights, faith-based, labour, and other advocacy organizations are calling on a UN Committee to hold Canada accountable for the role Canadian arms exports to Israel play in enabling serious rights violations against Palestinians with disabilities in Gaza in Gaza and creating further acts and sites of disablement. 

The organizations submitted a report to the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD). The report highlights the impact of indiscriminate attacks disproportionately affecting persons with disabilities enabled by Canada’s continued arms exports to Israel. The report urges the UN to call on Canada to align its actions with its international human rights commitments.

The submission outlines Canada’s extraterritorial human rights obligations under international law, emphasizing its failure to regulate military exports that have contributed to the destruction of essential medical infrastructure, denial of humanitarian aid, and heightened risks for persons with disabilities in Gaza. The report documents widespread violations, including the targeting of healthcare facilities, inaccessibility of evacuation procedures, and severe shortages of assistive devices, medical supplies, and life-sustaining treatments.

“The devastating impact of Canada’s arms exports on persons with disabilities in Gaza cannot be ignored,” said said Anjli Parrin, Director of the Global Human Rights Clinic at the University of Chicago Law School. “Canada has a duty to ensure its military exports do not contribute to the indiscriminate attacks that are maiming, displacing, and depriving persons with disabilities of their fundamental rights.”

“Gaza now has the highest number of child amputees per capita anywhere in the world,”  Parrin continued. “Many of these children have lost limbs due to explosive weapons, and the situation is exacerbated by attacks on medical infrastructure, which prevent access to essential treatments and assistive devices.”

“International human rights law does not stop at a country’s borders,” said James Yap, Acting Director of the International Human Rights Program at the University of Toronto Faculty of Law. “Canada must be held accountable for the role it plays in facilitating grave human rights violations through its failure to restrict military exports and enforce its extraterritorial obligations.”

The submission urges the CRPD Committee to issue strong recommendations to Canada, including:

• Cancel existing permits and continue the suspension of new permits for arms exports to Israel.
• Close loopholes allowing indirect military exports to Israel through third countries like the U.S.
• Provide disability-inclusive humanitarian aid, ensuring access to emergency relief, assistive devices, and medical care.
• Engage in international efforts to rebuild Gaza’s health system, prioritizing accessibility and rehabilitation services.

The CRPD Committee will consider this submission during its upcoming review of Canada’s compliance with the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in Geneva on March 10th, 2025. International human rights lawyers and students from the International Human Rights Program (IHRP) at the University of Toronto Faculty of Law and the Global Human Rights Clinic at the University of Chicago Law School will travel to Geneva to present their findings during Canada’s periodic review.

Statements from Other Endorsers

“The devastating impact of Canada’s arms sales to Israel on disabled Palestinians cannot be understated, as this report clearly illustrates. Canada’s long history of colonial violence against disabled people is continued once again by fueling the death and disablement of Palestinians. Whether at home or around the world, disabled people need justice due to Canada’s ableist violence.” — Brad Evoy, Executive Director, Disability Justice Network of Ontario.

Read the full submission here.

List of Endorsers:
Palestinian Disability Organizations

Disability Justice for Palestine Collective
Disability Representative Bodies Network Gaza
Palestinian Disability Coalition
Palestinian General Union of People with Disabilities 

Canadian Disability Organizations

Ase Community Foundation for Black Canadians with Disabilities
Council of Canadians with Disabilities
Disability Empowerment Equality Network Support Services
Disability Justice Network of Ontario
Disability Without Poverty
DisAbled Women’s Network Canada
Race & Disability Canada
SMILE Canada

Other Allies

Action Canada for Sexual Health and Rights
Al Huda Institute Canada
Arab Forum for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
Biblioterre
Canadian Council of Muslim Women
Canadian Feminist Alliance for International Action (FAFIA)
Canadian Foreign Policy Institute
Canadian Lawyers for International Human Rights
Canadian Muslim Civil Liberties Association
Canadian Muslim Healthcare Network
Canadian Nurses for Justice in Palestine
Canadian Peace Initiative
Canadian Union of Public Employees, Local 3902
Canadian Voice of Women for Peace
Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East
Caring for Social Justice Collective
Climate Justice Toronto
Complètement inclusif/Completely Inclusive
Connecticut Palestine Alliance (CTPA)
Coordinating Council 4 Palestine
Design Justice Toronto
DisruptOT
Diverse-OT National
Doctors for Humanity Global Health Coalition
Eyewitness Gaza
Flora Liebich Consulting
Freedom for Palestine - Unama'ki Cape Breton
Green Orillia
Hamilton & District Labour Council
Harmony Circle for Palestine
Health Workers Alliance for Palestine (HAP)
Housing and Land Rights Network - Habitat International Coalition
Independent Jewish Voices Canada
International Justice & Human Rights Clinic, Peter A. Allard School of Law, University of British Columbia
IslamicFamily
Islamic Social Services Association
Jewish Occupational Therapists 4 Palestine
Just Peace Advocates
Lebanese Union for People with Physical Disabilities (LUPD)
Legal Clinic at Lincoln Alexander School of Law, Toronto Metropolitan University
Manitoba Healthcare Workers for Palestine
Occupational Therapists for Palestine
OrthoPA Network
Ottawa Healthcare Professionals for Palestine
Oxfam Canada
Oxfam-Québec
Physicians for Humanity
Progressive Chinese of Québec
Quebec City Collective for Peace / Collectif de Québec pour la paix
Righting Relations Canada
RightOnCanada
Sustainable Human Empowerment (SHE) Associates Inc.
Tech Justice Law Project
The Liberatory Wellness Network
The United Jewish People's Order
Toronto Indigenous Harm Reduction
University Network for Human Rights
West Coast LEAF
Women's International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF) Canada
World BEYOND War

Disability Rights Experts and Scholars

Cara Elizabeth Yar Khan (United States)
Dr. Albiruni Abdul Razak (Canada)
Farida Atcha (Canada)
Ibaa Khalil (Jordan)
Kathleen Ruff (Canada)
Marina Salman (United States)
Parin Dossa (Canada)
Prof. Rachel Gorman (Canada)
Srirenkar Pathmanathan (Canada)
Dr. Sukaina Dada, OT Reg. (Canada)
Prof. Tess Sheldon (Canada)

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About the International Human Rights Program, University of Toronto Faculty of Law

The International Human Rights Program (IHRP) at the University of Toronto Faculty of Law is a centre for international human rights work. Established in 1987, the IHRP aims to encourage Canada’s adherence to its own international human rights commitments by ensuring accountability of its harms worldwide and those of third parties it is meant to regulate. The IHRP works with experienced lawyers, faculty, and students to pursue change in key areas such as corporate accountability, climate justice, and Indigenous rights. For more information, please visit www.ihrp.law.utoronto.ca. 

About the Global Human Rights Clinic, University of Chicago Law School

The Global Human Rights Clinic (GHRC) at the University of Chicago Law School works alongside partners and communities to advance justice and address the inequalities and structural disparities that lead to human rights violations worldwide. The GHRC uses diverse tactics and interdisciplinary methods to tackle pressing and under-addressed human rights issues, including investigating and advancing accountability for mass atrocities and armed conflict, addressing the impacts of colonialism, advocating for equality and non-discrimination, and advancing socio-economic rights. For more information, please visit www.law.uchicago.edu/ghrc. 

Contact Information:

James Yap

james.yap@utoronto.ca
Acting Director, International Human Rights Program, University of Toronto Faculty of Law

Anjli Parrin

aparrin@uchicago.edu
Director, Global Human Rights Clinic, University of Chicago Law School